North Korea sent a notice to the South Korean unification ministry Monday, formally proposing a working-level dialogue on January 27 in the North Korean town of Kaesong, near the border with the South.

In a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency Saturday, North Korea also said it would reopen an office for inter-Korean economic cooperation at the Kaesong industrial park that it closed during a time of high tensions last year.

North Korea also proposed holding separate talks later this month or in early February on other issues, including resuming a suspended joint tourism project and cooperation at an industrial complex in the border city of Kaesong.

The North also proposed holding separate Red Cross talks on resuming a suspended joint tourism project and halted cooperation at an industrial complex in the border city of Kaesong later in January or early next month.